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As the epidemic of heroin and opioid use swells, police and physicians are realizing that they need collaboration, not separation, to craft community responses.

"At the end of the day we readily recognize that we're dealing with patients," said Michael Brooks, the director of the New York State Police union's Police Surgeons Group. "There will always be a need for law enforcement."

A conference, called "The Medical Complexities of Illegal Drug Use: Partnering with Law Enforcement to Help Patients," opened Thursday at the Woodcliff Hotel & Spa and continues through Friday. The conference, bringing together police and medical personnel, will focus on drug-related issues both cops and doctors are encountering.

"It gives them a chance to come together and all get on the same page when it comes to law enforcement and treating patients," Brooks said.

The conference's topics range from the "Recognition of Patient Demographics for Opiate-Related Mortality" to "The Medical Risks of Dismantling Meth Labs."

"In New York state nobody has a requirement to notify the new buyers that the place they just bought was a meth lab," said Brooks, who noted that is a push for legislation that would mandate just such a notice.

The New York State Troopers Police Benevolent Association has a Police Surgeons Group with more than 1,700 members — physicians available to provide quick treatment to State Police and family if needed.

Among the conference speakers will be doctors, police and state lawmakers.